Just a thought, but it would not be big shock that Hezbollah would fire on these posts? What does Israel have to gain by intentionally firing on them? Hezbollah it seems would, it being a nice little anti-Israel PR bonanza for them.

I know enough about the fog of war to not be shocked if it was accidental Israeli fire, but intentionally, there is no logic to it.

No, the "global orgy of frenzied accusations" doesn't remind me of Jenin. On the one hand, Kofi Annan and others citing the documented and admitted bombing of a UN post, which is being described as "probably deliberate", versus the well-known inflated figures you cite for the Jenin "massacre" (which still involved more dead people than the UN bombing, but fewer than were being claimed at the time). Compared with Jenin, everyone seems to be fairly circumspect: "probably" deliberate, not "crime against humanity".

We may get to that point, but not yet.

Incidentally, your link for the "frenzy" points to a number of stories, not all concerned with the UN story (at least one of them concerns abortion) but I assume it's the top few you want us to read.

Rob, you are being disingenuous. It is the "the documented and admitted bombing of" various Hizballah nests, which happened to include unarmed UNIFIL personnel just hanging out doing the human shield bit. When they weren't rebuilding roads for Hizballah.

That's the point of the two flags. If you click on the photos you get more stories specifically about the flags.

I don't doubt that Israel did target those areas. They were targeting Hizballah. Why was there a post of unarmed UNIFIL personnel right next to the military target, if not as pawns of Kofi, so he could then accuse Israel of war crimes?

If you think that's too extreme: They were not supposed to leave before Kofi told them to, which he never did. And the the U.N. peacekeeping chief, Undersecretary-General Jean Marie Guehenno, was the central actor in the scandal of the videoed Hizballah kidnapping in 2000.

All the ingredients are the same: Kofi, Guehenno, Hizballah, Israel, Lebanon.

Judith wrote:

"Why was there a post of unarmed UNIFIL personnel right next to the military target, if not as pawns of Kofi, so he could then accuse Israel of war crimes?"

Because Israel had repeatedly assured the UN that the posts would not be bombed.

The L.A. Times reports: "Annan said he had received personal assurances from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that U.N. positions would be spared, and the U.N. force commander for south Lebanon, Gen. Alain Pellegrini, had been in repeated contact with Israeli officers to ensure the post's protection."

Source: Los Angeles Times, July 26.

So, there was no reason for the UN to evacuate the posts, as Israel was aware of them and had reassured the UN that the posts were in no danger.

"So, there was no reason for the UN to evacuate the posts, as Israel was aware of them and had reassured the UN that the posts were in no danger"

Well, that's why I took down my next post, because I wanted to think that one through.

I would like to know if Olmert really said this. Given how Israel feels (rightfully) about UNIFIL, and given the need to eradicate Hezballah, I find that questionable. I think it is more likely that Olmert said, "We'll try, Kofi, but your unarmed guys are surrounded by Hezballah who shoots from behind them, and you know that, so I can't promise anything."

Still, these were unarmed "observers" in the midst of terrorists who were using them as shields. What were they observing? Why would Kofi leave them there anyway?

I also think it's possible that Israel got some intel that these guys were working with Hezballah and decided to risk the bad PR. if they can show that UNIFIL was helping Hezballah, then they can turn the PR game on Kofi. UNIFIL already has a track record of helping Hezballah.

Judith, I think you may be reaching there with some of your hypotheses, although I could easily imagine collusion between the Chinese peacekeeper and Hezbollah and the Chinese government.

But this guy does not seem like he was working for Hezbollah - he's the Canadian who sent the email describing UN activities. And his former commander thought well of him.

He sounds like a great guy. I am not saying that there are no decent people working for the UN. At the same time you and I know what the UN and UNIFIL are like in the aggregate.

Another speculation from the next thread over.

Pamela at atlas shrugs churns out this bullshit better than you. And she doesn't pretend to be a liberal.

You are nothing but a lame-ass catapulter of Zionazi propaganda.

Pffffffffffffft.

VICTORY TO PALESTINE!

There you are Judith. I don't know whether "Slammin Mary" is a teenager or not, but as a 50-year-old with one grown-up kid (and one still mid-teens) I think I can reliably predict that I will not be attempting to type fart noises into your comment boxes any time soon. Nor will I be describing you as a "Zionazi". (Can't imagine any use to which I could put the phrase "lame-ass catapulter" either, unless to describe my archery performance on a bad day.)